According to Business Insider, Netflix CTO Elizabeth Stone confirmed the company has no formal performance reviews, replacing them with continuous feedback and the famous keeper test. On the Pragmatic Engineer podcast, Stone explained that employees now perform keeper tests on their managers too, asking “Do I want to stay? Am I excited about the work?” The company maintains an annual 360 process for goal-setting but structures it as feedback rather than evaluation. Netflix recently reworded its keeper test policy to acknowledge it might “sound scary” while emphasizing constant communication to avoid surprises. Former HR director Cheick Soumaré noted that cutting low performers helps maintain morale among high achievers, supporting Netflix’s talent-dense team philosophy.
The continuous feedback culture
Here’s the thing about Netflix’s approach: they’re betting that constant, candid feedback beats the annual review cycle that most companies still cling to. Stone describes it as something that should feel “familiar and comfortable every day of the year” when the culture is working properly. But let’s be real – that’s a massive cultural shift from what most tech workers experience. Instead of waiting for that dreaded annual review where everything gets dumped on you at once, the idea is that feedback flows constantly. The challenge? This requires managers who are actually good at giving feedback and employees who can handle hearing it regularly without getting defensive.
The keeper test in reality
Netflix’s keeper test has become legendary in Silicon Valley, but it’s evolved from its original formulation. Originally, managers asked: “If this person were leaving for a similar role elsewhere, would I fight to keep them?” If the answer was no, they’d get cut with “generous severance.” Now there’s more nuance and acknowledgment that this might “sound scary” to employees. What’s really interesting is how Stone describes it becoming a two-way street. Employees are now asking keeper-style questions about their managers and their work. Basically, it’s creating a system where everyone’s constantly evaluating whether this is still the right fit. But does this constant evaluation create more anxiety than clarity? That’s the billion-dollar question.
Compensation and promotions still matter
Even without formal reviews, Netflix still has to make decisions about money and advancement. Stone mentions that compensation discussions naturally involve talking about performance since Netflix pays at the “top of market.” And promotions? Those become another moment where performance gets discussed, just not in a structured review format. It’s a clever way to maintain the feedback loops that businesses need without the bureaucracy of traditional HR processes. The company seems to be saying: we’ll talk about your work when it actually matters for concrete outcomes, not because the calendar says it’s review season.
Part of a broader trend
Netflix isn’t alone in ditching traditional reviews. Jack Dorsey’s Block (formerly Square) moved to “constant evaluation” in 2023, and many smaller companies have embraced ongoing feedback models. There’s a growing recognition that the annual review process is fundamentally broken – it’s too infrequent, often biased, and doesn’t actually help people improve in real-time. Netflix’s approach, documented in their famous culture deck and discussed in resources like their public talks, has become something of a blueprint for companies wanting to move beyond traditional HR practices. The real test will be whether this model can scale beyond tech companies and work in more traditional industries where the talent market looks very different.
